A second trial of the people accused of illegally occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon is set for February and legal maneuvering is underway by both sides about what will be allowed and what won’t be allowed in court.
According to The Oregonian, prosecutors want the court to allow employees of the refuge and Harney County residents to testify about the impact the occupation had on them.
The defendants on the other hand want the court to allow them to use the principle of adverse possession. They’re arguing because they had possession of the land they owned it. That argument is in defense of the new misdemeanor trespass charges they’re facing.
Seven defendants are involved in this trial, which is set to start Feb. 14. Ammon Bundy, Ryan Bundy and five others were acquitted last year of charges connected to the 41-day occupation of the wildlife refuge.